19世纪20年代西方逻辑实证主义的兴起宣告了科学哲学学科的诞生。鸦片战争之后的中国,对于“西学”的引进有着较强大的内在动力,包括逻辑学、分析哲学、实验主义哲学等在内的“广义的”西方科学哲学在建国前都不同程度地被传入中国。受实用主义和功利主义影响,当时西方科学哲学在中国的传播和研究比较多地关注其社会变革功能。科学哲学思想的传播推动了中国现代化目标的实现,促成了新的科学观与科学精神的成形,使中国科学哲学大体经历了从无到有,从泛到精,到中西结合的过程。总体上建国前多数学者缺乏自然科学功底成为了当时制约国内科学哲学研究的主要障碍。科学哲学在中国要想取得深入的发展,乃至超越西方科学哲学,需要结合中国的思想资源与“科技与社会发展”实际情况,通过双向扬弃的融合创新,形成“中国化”的科学哲学。
The rise of occidental logical positivism in 1920s announced the establishment of scientific philosophy. Since the First Opium War, China has a strong internal motivation to introduce western learning. Therefore, scientific philosophy, which in a broad sense consists of logic, analytic philosophy, experimental philosophy and so on, has propagated to China in varying degrees before the foundation of new China. During the propagation and study of scientific philosophy, Chinese scholars tend to pay more attention to its function of social reform due to the affection of pragmatism and benthamism. The propagation of scientific philosophy has promoted the modernization of China. This has also pushed domestic formation of new spirit and view of science. Chinese scientific philosophy generally experienced a process that arising from nothing, from extensiveness to fineness and finally stepping into the blend of the East and the West. Generally, Chinese scholar's weak sci- ence knowledge is the main reason that led to the indigestion of western scientific philosophy. Therefore, if we want to pur- sue a further development of scientific philosophy, or even exceed western's, we must form a sinicized scientific philosophy through mutual sublation and integrated innovation.